Inking mechanism for rotary printing presses



Oct. 29, 1957 H. J. LUEHRS 2,811,105

INKING MECHANISM FOR ROTARY PRINTING PRESSES Original Filed June 12, 1952 6 Sheets-Sheet 1 INVENTOR W ATTORNEYS Oct. 29, 1957 H. J. LUEHRS 2,811,105

INKING MECHANISM FORROTARY PRINTING PRESSES Original Filed June 12, 1952 e Sheets-Sheet 2 i F k Ki x m '5 Q 7 INVENTOR @zr l & gmyw 4;, ATTORNEYS 061. 29, 1957 H1. LUEHRS 2,811,105

INKING MECHANISM FOR ROTARY PRINTING PRESSES Original Filed June 12, 1952 6 Sheets-Sheet 5 INVENTOR Oct. 29, 1957 H. J. LUEHRS 2,811,105

INKING MECHANISM FOR ROTARY PRINTING PRESSES Original Filed June 12, 1952 e Sheets-Sheiet 4 'INVENTOR m %o ATTORNEYS Oct. 29, 1957 H. J. LUEHRS R 2,811,105

INKING MECHANISM FOR ROTARY PRINTING PRESSES Original Filed June 12, 1952 6 Sheets-Sheet 5 IN VEN TOR.

Oct. 29,- 1957 H. J. LUEHRS 2,8

INKING MECHANISM FOR ROTARY PRINTING PRESSES Original Filed June 12. 1952 6 Sheets-Sheet 6 INVENTOR.

Y M W United States Patent INKING MECHANISM FOR ROTARY PRINTING PRESSES Hans J. Luehrs, Westerly, R. I., assignor to C. B. Qottrell & Sons Company, Westerly, R. I., a corporation of Delaware Original application June 12, 1952, Serial No. 2?3,045. Divided and this application July 13, 1954, Serial No. 442,960

2 Claims. (Cl. 101-349) My invention is directed to improvements in inking mechanisms for rotary printing presses, in which novel means are employed for pumping the ink in regulable quantities from an ink pressure supply chamber or chambers to the ink distribution to be fed thereby to its coacting plate cylinder.

My invention is directed more particularly to improvements in the drives for the ink distribution and the ink pumping mechanism.

My invention includes an ink distribution in which the distribution cylinder, which receives the ink from its ink pumping mechanism, will be rotated in a direction to cause its side toward the pumping mechanism to travel upwards irrespective of the direction of rotation of the plate cylinder.

My invention also includes novel operative connections between the main drive and the ink distribution and between the ink distribution and the ink pumping mechanism.

My invention includes more particularly a variable speed connection between the main drive shaft and the ink distribution cylinder shaft and a free-wheeling overrunning clutch between the distribution cylinder shaft and the drive for the ink pumping units; thus providing for the proper range of relative speeds between the ink distribution and the ink pumping mechanism.

My invention also includes provision for oscillating the two ductor rollers either directly or indirectly between the distribution cylinder and the ink drum of the ink distribution, to permit the rotation of the plate cylinder in either direction, as required, without affecting the direction of rotation of the distribution cylinder.

A practical embodiment of my invention is represented in the accompanying drawings, in which:

Fig. 1 represents a detail front view, partly in section, of the work side of the inking mechanism;

Fig. 2 represents a detail front view, partly in section, of the gear side of the inking mechanism;

Fig. 3 represents a detail plan view showing the variable speed drive between the main drive and the ink distribution cylinder shaft;

Fig. 4 represents a detail plan view showing the freewheeling overrunning clutch between the distribution cylinder and the drive shafts for the ink pumping mechanism;

Fig. 5 represents, diagrammatically, one arrangement of the ink distribution, and

Fig. 6 represents, diagrammatically, another arrangement of the ink distribution.

The ink distribution shown herein includes an ink distribution cylinder for receiving the ink from the ink pumping mechanism. The ink roller for the distribution cylinder is denoted by 1. The upper and lower oscillating ductor rollers are denoted by 3 and 4. The ink drum is denoted by 5. The upper ink rollers 6 and 7 lead from the ink drum 5 to the upper plate cylinder inking rollers 8 and 9. The lower ink rollers 10 and 11 lead from the ink drum 5 to the lower plate cylinder inking rollers elC - 7 2 12 and 13. The upper and lower inking rollers 14 and 15 contact the ink drum 5.

The plate cylinder 16 may be driven either clockwise or anti-clockwise from any suitable source of power.

When the plate cylinder 16 is driven anti-clockwise, as shown in Fig. 5, the ductor rollers 3 and 4 are oscillated to alternately contact the distribution cylinder 1 and their respective ink rollers 14 and 15, which ink rollers in turn contact the ink drum 5. In this form, the ink drum 5 is also driven anti-clockwise.

When the plate cylinder 16 is driven clockwise, as shown in Fig. 6, the ductor rollers 3 and 4 are oscillated to alternately contact the distribution cylinder 1 and the ink drum 5 which, in this form, is also driven clockwise. In both of the forms shown in Figs. 5 and 6, the ink distribution cylinder 1 is driven clockwise, so that its side toward the ink pumping mechanism travels upward, thereby preventing excessive ink leakage downwardly between the distribution cylinder 1 and the ink rail 20.

The shaft A of the main drive for the inking mechanism is shown as connected through a variable speed.

drive B (as a PIV drive) to the shaft 19 of the distribution cylinder 1. This drive may provide, for instance, a range of from 378.2 to 756.4 R. P. M.

In coaction with the variable speed drive B and varying at the same rate, the cross drive shaft C drives the interconnected drive shafts 25 of the ink pumping mechanism through a free-wheeling overrunning clutch D which cross shaft C is shown as geared at one end, as shown at 17, to the distribution cylinder shaft 19 and at its other end, as shown at 18, to the said clutch D. The speed reduction through this drive provides a range of from to R. P. M. which is equal to the same number of strokes per minute of the pumps of the ink pumping mechanism, to be immediately described.

The ink rail 20 extends along the upwardly traveling side of the ink distribution cylinder 1.

The pumping mechanism shown but not claimed herein forms the subject matter of my co-pending application filed June 12, 1952, Ser. No. 293,045, of which this application is a division.

It will be understood that various changes may be resorted to in the form, construction and arrangement of the several parts without departing from the spirit and scope of this invention, and hence it is not intended to be limited to the particular embodiments shown and described herein.

What I claim is:

1. In combination, a plate cylinder operable to rotate in either direction, an ink distribution including an ink distribution cylinder operable to rotate in one direction only irrespective of the direction of rotation of the plate cylinder, an ink drum, two drum inking rollers in contact therewith and two ductor rollers operable to oscillate in one path between the distribution cylinder and the ink drum when the plate cylinder is rotated in one direction, and to oscillate in another path between the distribution cylinder and their respective drum inking rollers when the plate cylinder is rotated in the opposite direction.

2. In combination, a plate cylinder operable to rotate in either direction, an ink distribution including an ink distribution cylinder operable to rotate in one direction only irrespective of the direction of rotation of the plate cylinder, an ink drum, upper and lower drum inking rollers in contact therewith and upper and lower ductor rollers operable to oscillate in one path between the distribution cylinder and the ink drum when the plate cylinder is rotated in one direction, and to oscillate in am T I f f 2,811,105

other path between the distribution cylinder and their respective upper and lowerdrum inking rollers when the plate cylinder is rotated the opposite direction.

I 3 1 R irerenes Cited inthe fi le of patent 4 Pythian May 4, 1926 Schlotter Apr. 9, 1929 Morris Feb. 10, 1931 Misuraca May 16, 1939 Blackley et a1 June 6, 1944 Taylor Nov. 18, 1947 Luehrs Apr. 5, 1949 

